Iran - National AI Strategy

Overview

The National Artificial Intelligence Document is a supra-ministerial, high-level national strategy for the Islamic Republic of Iran approved by the Supreme Council of the Cultural Revolution (SCCR) on 29 Khordad 1403 (19 June 2024). The Document was prepared by the Secretariat’s science & technology staff with participation from multiple ministries, state bodies, universities and private-sector representatives and is registered with document number 7816/1403. It sets a national vision, principles, objectives, priorities and a national division of responsibilities for AI governance and development, and it mandates the establishment of national coordination bodies — including a National AI Organization and a high-level Steering Council for AI — to operationalize the strategy. The Document articulates policy directions on infrastructure, data access, ethics, human capital and sectoral priorities to guide Iran’s AI development and to coordinate implementation across executive agencies. Full text (as provided in the original summary): https://pr.jri.ac.ir/article_723177_en.html

Definitions

The Document provides working definitions and a conceptual scope for terms used in the national strategy. It frames “artificial intelligence” and related terminology in a layered model that distinguishes (at a minimum) between: infrastructure (compute, data centers and national platforms), platform services (shared software and hosting), algorithmic systems (models and applications), and data governance (access, stewardship and privacy). Definitions in the Document are situated within national ethical, philosophical and religious considerations to guide interpretation and downstream regulation. These working definitions are intended to be operationalized by implementing agencies when drafting sectoral or technical rules, standards and procurement specifications.

Governance and Institutional Framework

The Document mandates a multi-level governance architecture with clear institutional responsibilities and coordination mechanisms. Principal governance elements include:

- A National AI Organization: established as the organisational vehicle for program delivery, coordination of national investments, technical standard-setting and regulatory alignment across sectors. The Document assigns this body responsibility for driving implementation of national programs and coordinating with line ministries and national authorities.

- A high-level Steering Council for AI: created to provide strategic oversight, inter-agency coordination and policy direction at the senior executive level, bringing together representatives from key ministries, national centers and security authorities.

- Secretariat roles: the Secretariat of the Supreme Council of the Cultural Revolution and the Presidency’s scientific and technological offices are assigned explicit tasks for preparing implementation plans, convening stakeholders and reporting progress.

- Line ministry and agency responsibilities: the Document assigns roles to multiple ministries and national bodies (including but not limited to the Presidency’s science & technology office, Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, Ministry of Science, Ministry of Health, the National Center for Cyberspace, and relevant security and defense authorities) for operationalizing sectoral programs, adopting technical and ethical standards and coordinating resources.

The governance approach emphasizes coordinated action, a national division of labor and formal assignment of lead agencies for priority domains. The Document also signals the expectation that implementing regulations and sectoral rules will be developed by the responsible ministries and authorities in accordance with existing law.

Key Focus Areas

• Priority sectors and missions: education, health, industry, defense, public administration and other public-interest domains are explicitly enumerated as priority areas for AI deployment, research and capacity building.
• Infrastructure and compute: coordinated investment in compute infrastructure, national platforms and shared data services to support research and public-interest AI projects.
• Data access and governance: measures to secure necessary data, enable appropriate data sharing for public-interest projects and implement stewardship arrangements consistent with privacy, security and national priorities.
• Ethics, culture and religion: embedding ethical, religious and cultural principles into AI policy and application to guide acceptable use, interpretation and downstream regulation.
• Human capital and talent development: programs for education, training, research funding and workforce development to build national capacity across academia, government and industry.
• Coordination of research, procurement and investment: aligning procurement, research funding and regulatory initiatives with national priorities to ensure consistency and efficient resource use.

Implementation Framework

The Document requires implementing agencies to prepare action plans that translate national priorities into operational programs, timelines and budgets. Key implementation elements include:

- Action planning: implementing bodies must prepare sectoral and cross-cutting action plans consistent with the Document’s priorities and the national division of responsibilities assigned by the Secretariat and Steering Council.

- Standards and technical guidance: agencies are expected to adopt or develop technical, ethical and safety standards where specified by the National AI Organization or relevant authorities, and to harmonize technical requirements across procurement and research funding programs.

- Data and infrastructure coordination: the Document directs coordination of national investments in compute infrastructure, shared data platforms and interoperable services to support public-interest AI applications.

- Resource alignment: implementing agencies are expected to align budgets, procurement processes and research funding with the national priorities set out in the Document and to coordinate multi-agency resource allocation where necessary.

- Private sector and academia engagement: while primarily addressed to state bodies and public-sector institutions, the Document sets expectations for engagement with the private sector and academic institutions, signaling prioritized domains for funding, partnerships and public–private collaboration.

Monitoring and Evaluation

The Document requires establishing monitoring, reporting and evaluation mechanisms to track implementation and outcomes. Implementing agencies are instructed to create monitoring and reporting systems, produce periodic progress reports and participate in inter-agency reviews convened by the National AI Organization and the Secretariat. The Document expects the development of performance indicators aligned with the 11 major national goals and the 14 policy areas it outlines (as referenced in the summary) and anticipates that the Steering Council will review progress and recommend adjustments to programs and timelines. Specific metrics, timelines and evaluation methodologies are to be set out in implementing regulations and agency action plans.

Penalties, Liability, and Appeals

The National Artificial Intelligence Document functions primarily as a strategic policy instrument and does not itself prescribe a novel penalty regime. Enforcement and liability arrangements are delegated to responsible executive agencies and existing legal frameworks. Where specific sanctions, liabilities or administrative penalties are necessary, the Document instructs implementing ministries and authorities to develop sectoral implementing regulations consistent with existing laws governing cybersecurity, privacy, national security and administrative compliance. The Document therefore establishes a framework for subsequent rule-making that will define concrete enforcement mechanisms, liability rules and any available appeals processes in line with national law.

Relationship to Other Instruments

The Document is positioned as a supra-ministerial strategic framework intended to complement and inform sectoral laws, regulations and existing national strategies (for example, in data governance, cybersecurity, health, education and defense). It explicitly references the need to harmonize with the existing legal framework and requires the development of sector-specific implementing rules consistent with the Document’s principles. Implementing agencies are tasked with ensuring that procurement, research funding, and regulatory initiatives align with the national priorities set by the Document and with relevant sectoral legislation.

International Alignment

The Document, as summarized, focuses on national priorities, governance arrangements and culturally framed ethical principles; the original summary does not provide detailed provisions on formal international regulatory alignment or explicit references to specific international instruments. The Document does position itself as a framework that could inform future harmonization efforts with international standards or practices, but it assigns implementing agencies the task of developing technical standards and sectoral rules. Where international engagement or alignment is pursued, this would be handled by the relevant ministries and national organizations in accordance with Iran’s foreign policy and legal processes; no specific international instruments are cited in the original summary provided.

Implementation Timeline

Sources and References